Heading over the Mid Season Hump...Who on the Bench Will Step Up in the 2nd Half??

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On defense, I think Keenan Lewis will step up with some second half takeaways. He's covering well, and has 12 passes defensed so far...I think he converts some of those to INT's in November and December.

On offense, I still think DeCastro will be able to contribute late in the season and into the playoffs. While our OL is starting to gel as it currently stands, with our OL luck, I can't see them remaining completely healthy throughout the rest of the season (especially since we seemed to be losing 2 o-linemen per game to injury earlier this season). If either of the guards get hurt, DeCastro should be able to come in and contribute (I like that Kugler's been keeping him involved with mental reps by having him chart the games on the sidelines while injured), and if either of the tackles get hurt before Gilbert is able to come back, we may have to move Colon or Foster outside to fill in, thereby opening up a spot for DeCastro at guard as well.

The Steelers' Chris Rainey carries for a touchdown during the fourth quarter of the Steelers' 24-17 victory over the Bengals on Sunday, Oct. 21, 2012, at Paul Brown Stadium.

Rookie running back Chris Rainey is beginning to settle into the Steelersí offense.

Heís carried the ball eight the times the past two games after having only seven the first five games.

ďIím starting to get involved in more plays, so every opportunity I get, Iím going to take it,Ē he said. ďIíll do whatever it takes to help the team win. Iím still working on special teams but just have to be patient. I know Iím not a starter, but Iíll do whatever it takes.Ē

Rainey has averaged 3.9 yards on 15 carries and has eight receptions. Heís also averaging 27.2 yards on kickoff returns.

I have a hunch that it's gonna take until year 2 until we really see what we can get out of Rainey. He's lightning quick, but I think he needs to get a little stronger and used to the speed of the game before we see the game click for him.

Posted by Michael David Smith on November 4, 2012, 5:45 AM EST AP
Steelers linebacker James Harrison missed the first four games of the season with a knee injury, and although Harrison has returned to start the last four games, he says he’s not 100 percent healthy. And not even close to 100 percent healthy.

Harrison told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review that he has no hope of being completely healthy until next season, and that all he can hope for is that as this season progresses, he can get into good enough shape that he’ll be able to make it through every game.

“I don’t believe you’ll be able to get back to 100 percent, health-wise,” Harrison said. “Conditioning-wise, it’s a possibility. Health-wise, you’re not going to be able to because as soon as you get done with surgery, you start playing, and you know you’re going to continue to deal with that little issue until the end of the season. When you finally get time to rehab it properly, you’ll be able to get to 100 percent.”

Harrison added, however, that he still thinks he can make life miserable for opposing quarterbacks, saying, “A guy that’s not 100 percent can still be destructive.”

So far this season Harrison hasn’t been destructive, recording just one sack. The combination of an injury and age have made the 34-year-old Harrison a less imposing player for the Steelers’ defense.